Inversion
by InfiniteBurn
Summary: Abandon everything you thought you knew about the Marvel Universe. Here, everything is different. Everything has been... Inverted. Rated T for language and violence.
1. Chapter 1 Welcome to SHIELD

I've been thinking about this for a while. With some help from my friend, PS2wizard, I finally managed to get the details hammered out. Enjoy this new and different look at the Marvel Universe!

**Marvel: Inversion**

Maria Hill was happy.

Actually, she was ecstatic. She had been torturing that foolish Rhino for hours, trying to get information on the resistance. When she was about to resort to some rather nasty inventions cooked up by Reed Richards, Rhino spilled the figurative beans, alerting her to the location of the central hideout. She could still recall the exact words.

"_Oh God! Please, don't!" Rhino screamed. He was on an adamantium table, cut out in his exact shape. Thin, metallic arms similar to those seen on the Iron Spider armor hovered over his form. These arms ended with pincer-like attachments, and they snapped hungrily at Rhino's form. Rhino himself was in terrible shape. His costume was full of holes that went in at varying depths, some going right to the marrow of his bones. All of them were bleeding. "The Resistance is located at 6298 Evermore Drive, Manhattan! You know, where the old Walgreens used to be!"_

"_How do we get in?" Maria asked._

"_You type in a code at the second register from the left! It's 5028! Now please, let me go!"_

"_Of course," Maria replied, smiling sweetly._

"_Really?" Rhino asked, hope shining very clearly in his eyes._

"_Absolutely. Just let me type in the release codes."_

_Maria walked out of the interrogation room, which was about the size of a standard living room. About three feet to the right was a control panel that resembled the screen of an iPad. After punching in her codes, she hit the release._

_Even from outside, Maria Hill could hear Rhino screaming as he was dropped from 50,000 feet above sea level._

Returning to the present, Maria Hill walked into the command center of the Helicarrier. She was always amazed at the advancements the command center sported. There was Starktech, Richardstech – heck, they even managed to pirate some really good sensory equipment from Oscorp.

"Done looking around, Hill?" Nick Fury snapped. Whirling around, she found herself eye-to-eyepatch with the famed Commander of S.H.I.E.L.D. He was dressed in his usual all black clothing – black turtleneck, and slacks and trailblazer of the same color. His brown army boots hardly made a sound as he walked across the floor.

"Yes, Sir!" Maria Hill replied, snapping a clean salute. She needed to get on his good side today if she was to get promoted to second-in-command. "I'm here to make an urgent report, Sir!"

"Then make it, girl," Fury replied. "I don't like having my time wasted."

"I have learned the location of the Resistance's hideout, Sir!"

Any activity that was going on in the command center stopped dead. Maria knew that if she were to drop a needle, everyone could hear it fall and hit the ground.

Nick Fury eyed her intently. "Are you sure?"

"Absolutely, Sir."

"Drop the 'Sirs' and get to the point. _Where are they?_"

"6298 Evermore Drive, Manhattan."

"Are you sure?"

"Beyond anything approaching a doubt. I didn't leave Rhino much choice. I made his choices very clear – tell the truth, or have Reed's nanites slowly turn his insides to ash."

Everyone started cheering at that remark. They all had their doubts about little Maria – she was the daughter of the man who started the Resistance, for crying out loud! Even when she joined S.H.I.E.L.D., it wasn't until she shot and killed her own father that she was finally accepted as an agent. Even then, there were still some doubters. Not anymore. Maria Hill had given the agency its biggest win ever. They would destroy the Resistance.

Maria knew all that, but all she could pay attention to was the look of satisfaction on Nick Fury's face. He was clapping more slowly than the others as he walked down the steps towards Maria. "Well done, Agent Hill," Fury grinned. "Or should I say… _Assistant Director_ Hill."

"Hey!" Dum-Dum Dugan shouted. "I'm still Assistant Director, you damn sonuva-"

Fury didn't even look his way as he took out his .45 mill and shot Dugan right in the heart.

"Well done, Hill," Fury congratulated once again.

Nobody would mind the dead body. It was just a regular day aboard the Helicarrier.

While everyone else aboard the Helicarrier was busy celebrating the end of the Resistance, a prisoner was getting a call.

This man had his hands and feet chained to the wall. The chains were an adamantium and vibranium mixture, and the only way to release him was by way of a control panel outside, which needed at least a dozen codes and scans. All this precaution was absolutely necessary, because the man inside had singlehandedly put Iron Man, Captain America, and every other major "hero" in the hospital in the time it took for S.H.I.E.L.D. to capture him.

Looking up into the reflective surface of the door, Norman Osborn got a call via the iPad that Nick Fury left well out of his reach.

"You look like human feces, Norman," a robotic voice buzzed in through the speakers.

"Nice to see you too, Ultron," Norman replied. He still couldn't believe that the plan had got this far. "Is Nitro in place?"

"He is. As you know, he can't blow up the whole Helicarrier. What we can do, however, is have him explode near the cooling system. That way, we can cripple them while they're still over the Atlantic Ocean."

"Good. Now, don't waste any time trying to save me. I heard Rhino falling from in here. Blow the coolants, get out, and find Rhino."

"It's okay, Norman," Ultron replied as the chains released Osborn. "Tiger Shark picked him up as he fell into the sea. They're on their way to land now. What I'm worried about, though, is his story. Do you think it sold?"

"We can only hope," Norman replied as he grabbed the iPad. Again, Osborn was amazed at Ultron's abilities. He was able to integrate with any technology through sheer force of willpower.

The door to Osborn's cell opened. It was time to set the plan in motion.

That's what I have so far. Please review!


	2. Chapter 2 Osborn vs the Helicarrier

No theatrics, no wisecracks. Here's the next chapter of Inversion!

Osborn walked quickly through the corridors. It was pointless to try and hide – S.H.I.E.L.D.'s security cameras would catch him in moments, if they didn't see him exiting his cell. If he ran into any agents, the game was up – he was still wearing his orange and black jumpsuit, and he had no idea where the locker room was. So all he had left to rely on were Ultron, Nitro, and pure dumb luck.

Osborn remembered when Anti-Venom brought him in. The traitorous double-agent had originally been a member of the Resistance. His true colors came through when, during an evacuation from the Sierra Nevada base, Brock knocked him out with one well-placed punch to the head. Brock then proceeded to hand him over to the Avengers, hoping to score big points with him. They didn't disappoint – he was placed in charge of the Thunderbolts.

The joke was on Brock, though. The Resistance's leaders, including Osborn, planned the whole thing. In fact, the only reason they let Brock in was because they knew that he would become a traitor. The plan, once Osborn was brought in, was two-fold. One – deliver a crippling blow to S.H.I.E.L.D., so they would be cut off from the main "hero" forces in America. Two – plunder their databases and find out what exactly they, along with every other "hero" on Earth, were planning.

Osborn came upon what he was looking for – a giant, triple-locked door labeled _S.H.I.E.L.D. Databases_. Satisfied that no one was around, Osborn made a call to Ultron via the iPad. "I found the door to the database," Osborn said.

"Hook me in," Ultron replied. "I'll break through their codes."

"What are you going to do about the eye scans and fingerprint scans?" Osborn asked.

If Ultron could cock an eyebrow, he would be doing it right now. As things stood, all he did was cock his head to one side. "It's me, remember?"

"Oh my god," Osborn said theatrically, clutching his chest. "Did Ultron the robot just make a joke?"

"Shut up and hook me in."

Osborn did just that. On the screen, Ultron's eyes narrowed to thin red lines as he concentrated. The control panel's screen had information flash randomly across it, as if a virus was ravaging its systems. After a few seconds, the control screen flashed the words _Access granted_.

"There. It's done," Ultron said, pulling back into himself. "I can't guarantee that the security system didn't notice my presence, though."

"I'll be quick, then," Osborn replied. "Get Nitro ready. If you have a shot to take this thing down, you take it. No exceptions."

"What about you?"

Osborn turned off the iPad before Ultron could say anymore. The truth was – he didn't know a damn thing about what he should do if things went south.

Opening the door, Norman Osborn wished that he had.

A short, heavily built man stood in front of the gigantic computer screen. He was wearing a white t-shirt and faded jeans, making him look like a lumber jack. Osborn knew better. He recognized that hairstyle anywhere – wild black hair that swept backwards in two corners, almost like a boomerang. More than that, it was the eyes. They were the eyes of a man who had been controlled all his life… before giving in to his rage and killing anyone who had ever so much as owed him a quarter.

"Hello, Osborn," Wolverine growled, his famous adamantium claws popping out with a _snikt_!

"How long have you been here," Osborn asked, turning it into a statement.

"Long enough t' smoke two cigars," Logan replied, gesturing at the smoke-filled air.

Waving at the air, Osborn said, "Is that what you've been doing? I thought someone was burning your laundry. Honestly, if you're going to fill my lungs with cigar smoke, at least make them Cuban."

Wolverine said nothing, only ran at Osborn with both sets of claws leading the way. He dodged it easily, leaping over Logan and twisting in the air. Landing in a fighting stance, Osborn picked up a nearby fire extinguisher and threw it at Logan. Wolverine didn't slice it in half, or even dodge it. He batted it aside with the flat of his claws.

"You're slipping up, Osborn," Logan taunted, dragging his claws Freddy Krueger style across one of the walls. "Whatever happened to the man who put the Avengers, the Fantastic Four, and the X-Men in the hospital all within the week?"

"Take a look at the reports, shorty," Osborn replied. "In each and every fight…"

Mechanical hands burst from the wall, grabbing Wolverine across the throat and left arm. Taking advantage of his surprise, Osborn sprinted up to Logan with superhuman speed. Norman finger jabbed some of Wolverine's pressure points – two at the base of the neck, and fourteen in the chest.

"… I was always with someone," Osborn finished as Logan dropped to the ground.

Looking up, Osborn asked, "What the hell took you so long?"

"I don't know if you noticed, Osborn," Ultron replied, "but I had to take care of some company first."

It was then that Osborn looked through the hole that Ultron came through. There were S.H.I.E.L.D. agents littered all about the hallway. None of them were dead, seeing as they were all groaning with pain.

"Is Nitro in place?" Osborn asked, turning his attention to the computer.

"He is," Ultron replied, taking up the monitors not used by Osborn. "I told not to explode until I give him the signal."

Neither of them spoke after that for a very simple reason – they were running out of time. They had two hours – maximum – before the Helicarrier reached New York. By then, they would fail the first objective of the plan. With that in mind, they focused on the computers, turning through terabyte after terabyte. They went through weapons designs, profiles on "heroes" and "villains", and countless phone taps. It was beginning to look hopeless until…

"I've got it!" Osborn cried. Not wasting any time, Osborn jammed his finger into the USB port. Twenty milliseconds later, the plans of the fake heroes were safe inside Ultron.

With a thought, Ultron opened up a communications channel with Nitro. "Nitro! Blow the coolants! _**NOW**_**!**"

The Helicarrier lurched to one side, falling slowly into the sea. At the same time, Wolverine started to wake up. Looking at each other, Norman and Ultron said at the same time, "Time to go."

Grabbing Norman, Ultron dived out the window. They went out at an angle, so they were out of the shadow of the Helicarrier in seconds. Ultron tapped his wrist in three places, each one lighting up red, green, and blue. Two seconds later, Osborn's Goblin Glider flew beside them. Norman wasted no time in jumping on.

The minute Osborn touched the glider, nanomachines started crawling up his legs. They moved up in a checkerboard pattern, forming a green and black armor. He soon became the Green Goblin, a wanted man in all 50 states of the U.S. and twenty-seven different countries.

"Let's go, Ultron," Osborn said. "We have plans to discover and a world to save."

That ends chapter two. Who are the leaders of the Resistance? What are the fake heroes' plans?


	3. Chapter 3 Plans and Revelations

I bet you have a lot of questions, like, "Who are the leaders of the Resistance? What are the fake heroes planning? What kind of underwear does Bullseye wear?"… Ok, maybe not that last one. Still, wonder no more! Here is the ground-breaking third chapter of Inversion!

Sabretooth hated these assignments the big wigs in the Resistance gave him. A fight against the X-Men, protecting an important location, even fighting that annoying Darkhawk – anything but showing new recruits the ropes.

This batch was a mix of mutants and S.H.I.E.L.D. research subjects. There was Concussion, a mutant who could spray gel from his wrists which, detonated telepathically, had the force of C4 mixed with AMFO. Concussion was easy to tell apart from the others thanks to the tattoo on his arm; a tiger holding the Earth in one claw, and a grenade in the other claw. Then there was Kane, a teenage boy who was the first – and only – result of Operation: Daywalker. He was kidnapped from his home and then had vampire blood and other chemicals injected into his bloodstream. Now, he's a vampire who can walk in daylight without getting so much as a sunburn. He was identifiable thanks to his green katana sword and blond hair.

Now the chick, Quantum… she made the whole experience bearable for Sabretooth. She had the unique ability to send out an energy wave that messed with brain waves – specifically, make them slow down. It would appear to everyone else as if time had slowed down, a trick she used to great effect when she escaped from S.H.I.E.L.D.'s mutant division. Her blue-and-white hair was always getting in her eyes, and she was always brushing them to the side. While Kane and Concussion where busy geeking out at every little detail, Quantum was actually paying attention to what Sabretooth was saying, memorizing every plan and evacuation protocol.

They were all in the most secret of bases – the infamous "Diablo Muerte" base. Its location is a complete secret, known only to the leaders of the Resistance and its very best agents. Here, it was equipped with the very latest tech by all the major geniuses. They had stuff from Oscorp, Doctor Doom, and even High Evolutionary tech. If any of the fake heroes got here, then all was lost.

One of the many secrets that Diablo Muerte kept was a wall. It was actually a fake wall, through which the leaders of the Resistance would meet, along with one agent they would pick at random. Today, they were holding a meeting that would change the world.

On a computer screen about half the size of a standard movie theatre screen, the plans that Ultron and Osborn stole were on display. There was a gold gauntlet, with six groves on the area where the back of the hand would be covered. There was also a broadsword, a simple thing with gray steel and a brown leather handle. Under the gauntlet was a label reading _Infinity Gauntlet_. Under the broadsword was a label reading _Twilight Sword_.

"So," Ultron said, "this is their plan. Find the Reality Gauntlet and the Twilight Sword, and use the items' powers to control the cosmos."

"No," Osborn said. "Something doesn't feel right."

"What do you mean?" Mystique asked. Mystique was the undisputed voice of mutantkind, and a darn good spy. "We have their plans, and it couldn't be any clearer!"

"I know," Osborn said. "And that's what worries me."

"The self-proclaimed heroes have never been very smart, Osborn. You know that," Doctor Doom said in reply. Doom was the leader of the only nation that was sympathetic to the Resistance's cause, and one of the smartest men in the world. "What else could they possibly have up their sleeves?"

"Look, you all know that the fake heroes' brains aren't worth beans," Osborn said, "but one thing has remained consistent – they never make their plans as obvious as this."

"So what you're saying," High Evolutionary asked, "is that we're overlooking something? It is hard to believe that we would do such a thing."

Nobody said anything after that. Ultron and Doctor Doom used their various technologies to see what was missing, using holograms, AI's, and lots of robots. High Evolutionary busied himself studying a sample of Kane's blood, trying to figure out what exactly made him immune to sunlight. Mystique had vanished, off to God knows where. Osborn was busy staring at the screen, trying to discern whatever detail they could've missed.

"Wait," Osborn said abruptly. "Ultron, can you bring up an image of the Infinity Gems?"

"Easily," Ultron replied. He hit six places on his arm, and six gems, colored green, orange, yellow, blue, red, and purple appeared. Each one fit neatly into the groves in the Infinity Gauntlet.

"There are the Infinity Gems," Ultron announced. "Each one controls a different aspect of existence. The green one is the Soul gem. The orange one is the Time gem. The purple one controls Space. The blue gem controls the Mind. The yellow one controls Reality. And the red gem, Power, is the power source of the Infinity Gauntlet."

"And they don't have to be in the Infinity Gauntlet in order to be used?" Osborn asked.

"No," Doctor Doom replied. "I found that out through a rather nasty personal experience with the Soul gem. Why do you ask?"

Staring intently at the gems, Osborn asked, "What exactly does the Power gem do? Does it just act as a battery for the Infinity Gauntlet?"

"No," High Evolutionary replied. "It can grant its wielder invincibility. Its power comes from… well, every power that has, is, or will exist."

Osborn's eyes widened with horror. "That's what they're planning."

"What?" Mystique asked as she came back into the room. "What are they planning?"

"Look at the Power gem," Osborn told everyone. "It's fits in perfectly in the pommel of the Twilight Sword."

"Oh, God," Doctor Doom whispered, finally understanding what the real plan was. "The Twilight Sword, on its own, was able to hold back millions of armies just by threat alone. Powered by the Power gem, its wielder would be… unstoppable."

"We need to find those gems," High Evolutionary stated. "_**NOW**_."

"First things first," Mystique interrupted. "We have a problem we need to solve now. The fake heroes have learned where we are, and they've sent the Thunderbolts and Secret Avengers to capture us… or kill us."


	4. Chapter 4 Friends make the fiercest foes

Sorry for the wait. Here's the next chapter of Inversion!

Anti-Venom was not happy.

To tell the truth, he was quite the opposite. He knew that getting into the Diablo Muerte base would be difficult, but now he wouldn't have S.H.I.E.L.D. backing him up. All he had was his little crew of misfit heroes – the Thunderbolts – and the Secret Avengers. He didn't even have the full roster of the Secret Avengers – he had Moon Knight, the second Ant-Man, and Beast of the X-Men!

Looking over his shoulder, he was once again proud of his Thunderbolts. There was Darkhawk, who was twitching with the anticipation of a fight. There was also Firestar, her red hair flying in the wind. Molten Man kept giving Firestar "the look", hoping to score a date with her. _When is that idiot going to take a hint_? Anti-Venom wondered.

Then there was the Thunderbolts' secret weapon. She was easily the world's deadliest assassin before the Resistance was even formed. She had even managed to kill Bullseye for a while, before his friends in the Resistance brought him back. Her black hair clung to her body as she twirled twin Sais in her hands.

"Distance to entrance at 500 yards, Anti-Venom," Elektra reported.

"Good," Anti-Venom replied. Turning to the other Thunderbolts, he said, "Now listen up. Those guys in there aren't like those idiot HYDRA agents we took down. These guys can – and will – hurt you in ways that will remind you all of the week before Norman Osborn was brought in. Do not give them the chance to take a shot, because they will take it."

Turning back in front of him, Anti-Venom said, "That's enough talk from you guys. We're going in."

Darkhawk released a blast of pure blue energy, shattering the door into lots of little pieces. People started running for cover as the Thunderbolts and the Secret Avengers started tearing the place apart, brick by brick. All the while, Anti-Venom was shouting, "Come out here, you cowards! Come on, Osborn! Come out, and we won't kill these losers!"

"First," a voice shouted from up near the ceiling, "You'll have to go through us!"

Looking up, Anti-Venom saw his nightmares realized. It was the Collective, the Resistance's best agents. There was Sabretooth, one of the oldest mutants in existence. Carnage was there as well, tendrils of his red symbiote flicking around like they were whips. Curt Connors was there in his Lizard form, having joined up with the Resistance after S.H.I.E.L.D. kidnapped his son. Electro didn't have time to put on his costume, so he was wearing a black t-shirt and blue jeans. Finally, there was Bullseye, twirling twin Sais as Elektra twirled hers.

"It's been a while, Brock," Carnage said, his voice dangerously calm. "Do you remember the last time we fought?"

"It wasn't against each other," Anti-Venom replied. "We fought Magneto, bringing him to his knees. I wanted to kill him. You had other ideas – mainly turning him in to the Resistance. Then came the evacuation, and well… here we are."

"Why did you do it?" Carnage roared. "We were partners! I even thought that you were my friend!"

"Because you and I were working for an evil cause!" Anti-Venom roared back. "And you still are! The Resistance is hurting innocent people just by existing! It needs to be torn apart and its members imprisoned! It's the only way that we'll achieve any sort of peace!"

"Relax, Carnage," the Lizard said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "It's useless to try to reason with a man like that."

Carnage said nothing, only jumped down and started fighting the Secret Avengers. The reason he wasn't fighting Anti-Venom was simple; if he got anywhere near fifteen feet from him, Carnage's symbiote would disintegrate. The other members of the Collective jumped down and joined in the fray.

Sabretooth landed in front of Darkhawk and swiped at him with his adamantium claws. Darkhawk dodged it, coming in with his own claws. (Author's Note: I was not able to find what material Darkhawk's claws were made out of.) Catching his arm, Sabretooth threw Darkhawk into a pile of crates.

"I'm actually happy that you came in, 'Hawk," Sabretooth said. "You're the perfect venting exercise."

"Oh, man. This is my lucky day," Darkhawk said. "Once I defeat you and bring you in, I'll graduate to one of the Avengers teams."

Darkhawk leaped at Sabretooth, using his claws again. Again catching them, Sabretooth started pounding away at Darkhawk, not letting up in the slightest. After about a half a minute, Sabretooth released him, letting him slide down to the ground. Darkhawk's armor started to liquefy and flow into the amulet on his chest. Sabretooth had known this would happen, having read Darkhawk's profile. Darkhawk had the unique ability to switch from his armored form to his human form, and the human form inside wouldn't be harmed at all. He had to move fast before Darkhawk regained consciousness and healed himself. The instant Darkhawk turned human, Sabretooth grabbed the amulet and put it in a pouch on his belt.

Across the way, Electro was fighting Ant-Man. None of the ants could touch Electro without being electrocuted, but Ant-Man had shrunk down to his smallest size, making targeting very hard. As the fight went on, Electro noticed that fleeing civilians were swatting ants of themselves. Some ants were carrying drops of liquid TNT.

"You're willing to sacrifice innocent people just to get at me? Not very heroic of you," Electro remarked.

Electro could barely make out the next squeaks. "Who gives a damn about heroics? I'm just doing this for the paycheck. It's why I applied for the job in the first place."

"In that case," Electro said, his voice starting at a growl and growing in volume, "would you stop calling yourself a hero?"

Electro then magnetized the air in a twenty yard radius, freezing everything inside. The reason why was simple – he did it in a way that magnetized the very iron in the ants' (and Ant-Man's) blood. With that taken care of, he turned his attention to helping the evacuation.

Curt Connors wished that he had that sort of luck. Molten Man was all that he could handle, even with the added abilities he got as the Lizard. He would either get burned by his skin, or Molten would slip out of his grasp like an oiled bar of soap. Molten Man had no such difficulties – Lizard was taking a beating, and he wouldn't last much longer.

Looking to his left, Lizard saw what could be his salvation. What he saw was a canister of chloroform. Running as fast as his legs would take him, Connors grabbed the chloroform with both hands. He then ripped open the top, showering Molten Man with its contents. None of the liquid got down his throat, but the fumes were more than enough to make him drop his defenses. The Lizard wasted no time in hitting him with a punch that rivaled any the Hulk could have done. Molten Man then found a very comfortable seat… located in the wall ten feet above the ground.

Carnage was proud of the work his team got done. Now it was time to stop his former partner.

That ends chapter four. Keep a lookout for chapter five!


	5. Chapter 5 Hellfire anyone?

**Inversion Chapter 5**

Carnage and Anti-Venom circled each other, just as Bullseye and Elektra were. Carnage made sure that he was out of range of Anti-Venom's "curing" touch. Anti-Venom, on the other hand, was quite comfortable, walking along like he was taking a Sunday stroll in a park. Bullseye had nothing but complete malice in his eyes – this woman, Elektra, took everything near and dear to him. She took his friends, his family, and even his life. Now, here is this she-devil again, ready to make his life a hell on Earth.

"So, here we are," Anti-Venom said. "We're fighting each other, at last. Part of me wishes we didn't have to do this."

"Me too," Carnage replied.

"Then why are we?" Anti-Venom asked. Forging on, he said, "You were the one who taught me that the law must always be upheld, even when it may not be the favorite among the people. What's right isn't always popular."

"What's popular isn't always right," Carnage replied, finishing the motto that Carnage adopted in the early days of the Resistance. "This, however, is hardly the time or place."

"Why?" Anti-Venom demanded.

"Because this time, the law has no moral backing," Carnage started walking around Anti-Venom while he talked. "Laws are put in place to protect innocent people. This law – this registration of all super-humans – would cause far more harm than good. What about the mutants? They have no choice but to be born with their powers. This law would allow every fatass in Washington to turn everyday civilians into soldiers… against the civilians' consents."

Carnage had his symbiote form two axes in his hands. "Now, I'm only going to say this once. Leave now, or…" There was no need to finish the sentence.

Anti-Venom said nothing, only had two tendrils made of his goop wrap around Carnage. Damn it – this is why he didn't want to face off against Anti-Venom earlier! In the heat of the battle, he had forgotten that Brock's powers literally disintegrated symbiotes!

Nobody saw what exactly it was. Only a flash of green and blonde. Carnage suddenly found himself free of Anti-Venom's grip, and he found a kid with blonde hair and a green katana by his side.

"We thought you could use some help," Kane said, answering Carnage's question before he could ask it.

"We?" Carnage asked instead. Then he looked at Anti-Venom, and he saw that he wasn't the focus of Brock's attention anymore. Two other kids were there, one with a tattoo on his arm and a girl with blue-and-white hair.

"We got this guy," the other boy told Kane. "Help out Bullseye."

"You got it," Kane said before he disappeared in a swarm of bats. He reappeared the same way he disappeared next to Bullseye.

"We know all about you," Quantum told Anti-Venom, her voice reminding everyone of an American version of Hermione Granger. "So I'm not even going to bother giving you the 'one chance to surrender' speech."

"Smart girl," Anti-Venom replied. He leaped at Quantum, claws outstretched. When he got within a few feet of her, though, he started acting strangely. He was still moving at full speed thanks to gravity, but his movements had slowed to a quarter of his usual speed. Carnage realized in an instant that Quantum had used her power on Brock.

This allowed Quantum and Concussion plenty of time to sidestep Anti-Venom. Concussion splayed his hands like Doctor Strange used to. From the underside of his wrists, gel that resembled clear Jello came spraying out. They stuck to Brock's left arm and leg. Concussion blinked, and the gel detonated, sending Brock into the far wall.

Quantum must have deactivated her power over Brock, because what he said next didn't sound slow at all. "Where the hell did you guys get power like that?!"

"Mutants," Concussion said. "Right here. Although Jan here was experimented on by S.H.I.E.L.D. just hours after she found her powers."

"Ah. So you're the mysterious 'X-0' project Fury was working on. Well, pleased to make your acquaintance, miss."

Concussion and Quantum were at a complete loss for words. Anti-Venom took advantage of their shock to send dozens of tendrils their way. Each one tugged ahead in an effort to be the first one to the recruits.

They were all destined to be disappointed. Carnage wrapped Concussion and Quantum around the waists with two red strands of symbiote, pulling them out of harm's way. Anti-Venom spared a quick glance towards Elektra to see if she was done yet, and to his surprise and dismay, she lay on the ground unconscious. Bullseye and Kane walked to join Carnage and the others. Lizard and Electro returned as well, having finished evacuating the civilians.

"Well," Anti-Venom said, "I think we've worn out our welcome." Turning to his team of Thunderbolts, who was only now beginning to stir, he barked, "Thunderbolts – withdraw!"

Everyone, including the Secret Avengers, ran for the doorway. They didn't stop running even after they were gone from anyone's sight. The Collective and the rookies just stood there, not believing what had just happened. Then, the silence was broken by something unexpected. Kane started laughing.

"This… is… freakin'… AWESOME!" Kane shouted.

The Lizard stared at him in disappointed astonishment. "What could you possibly find, out of this whole situation, that could possibly be, 'awesome'?"

"I always wanted to feel what it felt like to be a Super Hero," Kane said, a wide smile on his face. "Kicking ass, protecting innocent people, and be a part of something bigger than yourself… this is the best thing that's happened to me since my first kiss!"

"Dude," Concussion said to Kane, "a suggestion – run for your life."

Quantum started running after Kane, her power cancelling out his supernatural speed granted via his vampire blood. While everyone laughed, Ultron came out.

"Humans," Ultron muttered. "I'll never understand you. But what was that old saying? Ah, yes. You can't live with 'em, you can't live without 'em."

Everyone stopped what they were doing. Quantum came to a stop, turning off her power. Kane didn't notice until he ran right into a wall.

After Kane picked himself up, Ultron said, "Okay, everyone, new mission. Priority 10. We believe that the government-backed heroes have managed to get their hands on a weapon of literally unmeasurable power. The only way we can counter is to get our hands on the Infinity gems. You're all being split into groups, along with another agent and a leader of the Resistance."

"Does that include us, sir?" Quantum asked. She hid it well enough, but Kane and Concussion knew that she was very eager to go on a field mission.

"I think your fight against Anti-Venom is evidence enough," Ultron replied. "Pack up, kids. You're leaving with us within the hour."

Kane walked along, trying to keep pace with Doctor Doom and Baron Mordo.

It wasn't easy, seeing as they were in hell. Doom and Mordo had cast a series of spells before they came, allowing them to pass through undetected. Kane kept catching himself looking over his shoulder, though, looking for the demon he was sure was following them.

"Can we talk?" Kane whispered.

"Absolutely," Doom replied in a normal voice. "We could shout at the top of our lungs, and nobody would be able to hear us."

"Oh," Kane said, relaxing just the tiniest bit. "Mind if I ask a question?"

"What is it?"

"Just how were the Thunderbolts made?" Kane asked. "I mean, I kept hearing on the TV that they were reformed 'villains', but beyond that, they never explained anything."

"That's the story they want the public to believe," Baron Mordo said, his voice like silk, "but the truth is far more sinister. They were brought together by Nick Fury to act as a sort of – I don't know if there is a word for what they are. Their function is to catch us by thinking like us. A team of villains – who used to be _**true**_ heroes – bringing in heroes and sending them off to the Raft."

Doom held up a hand, bringing the others to a halt. "We're here."

They were on the edge of an oasis. Four compass palm trees stood at the cardinal points… or they would, if a compass worked in hell. In the center, a pond of the purest blue played host to a demon. Its hide was so dark a blue it almost seemed black. Spikes stood up from its head, appearing like a 90's rocker. Even from a couple yards away, everyone could see its muscles.

"Hello, Blackheart," Doom said.

WHAT?! Blackheart knowing Doom?! Stayed tuned for more Inversion! (Sorry if I sounded cheesey. It's really late at night, and I'm not thinking straight.)


	6. Chapter 6: Gem Hunt, part 1

Alright, everyone. This chapter had a lot a help from a friend of mine. Thanks, PS2wiazrd!

**Chapter 6 – Gem Hunt, Part 1**

Kane was scared before. He had been scared when he was kidnapped by S.H.I.E.L.D. for experimentation. He was scared when his vampiric instincts first took over, killing a girl who couldn't have been older than twelve. He had been especially scared when the Secret Avengers and the Thunderbolts stormed the Diablo Muerte base. However, he had never been as scared as he was now; Kane was now in hell, talking with the literal son of the devil, Blackheart.

Doctor Doom and Baron Mordo had no such fear. They were talking to Blackheart in normal voices – friendly, in fact. Blackheart was showing no traces of hostility, and even offered his guests a few party foods (to which Doom whispered to the others that they should decline, on account of Blackheart's cooking ability).

"I don't think I've seen you before," Blackheart said to Kane. "What's your name?"

"Kane, sir," he replied.

"No need to call me 'sir'," Blackheart said. "I don't think I've earned that, yet."

"Oh," Kane said, confused. "Ok."

Blackheart stared at him, his great red eyes blinking only once. "You have a question on your tongue. What is it?"

Kane couldn't hold it in any longer. "_What is going on here?!_ I thought all demons were bad! And here we are talking to Blackheart, the Son of the Devil Mephisto! Ghost Rider had to lock him away because he was so evil!"

Once Kane finished his rant, he became completely silent due to everyone staring at him. No one said it, but one word hung in the air – _Really?_

"After the taste of reality back at Diablo Muerte," Baron Mordo said, "do you really believe that garbage the 'heroes' keep spouting?"

"They've attacked Diablo Muerte?!" Blackheart asked, alarmed.

"Yes," Doom replied, "but it was nothing that the Collective couldn't handle. Even Kane here," he gestured towards him, "helped beat Elektra."

"Really?" Blackheart said, impressed. "You must have some power, Kane."

"I'm a vampire," Kane said, his tone filled unusually with sadness and regret. "The only one to walk in daylight."

Blackheart sighed, not out of boredom, but of sympathy. "I know how you feel."

"You do?"

"Yes. When you wake up with these powers, you feel like a god. Pretty soon you start acting like one too. Everybody's bowing down in respect, offering gifts and services in return for power. Then something happens. It's a small little thing, something normally anyone wouldn't've spared a glance. But that little thing awakens a small voice in your head, telling you what you're doing is wrong. You're able to ignore that voice until you do something so horrible, so monstrous, the little voice in your head doesn't even _want _to say, 'I told you so.' You then spend the rest of your life trying to make up for it… but the pain never goes away."

Kane was tearing up by the end. What Blackheart described was exactly what happened to him.

"When I started out trying to redeem myself," Blackheart continued, "I was pretty lousy at it. Saved a little kid from being run over by a car, but the car ended up driving into a house. Armed robbery? Stopped, but there wasn't much left of a building to come back to in the end. And those were my best results."

"That's when we found him," Baron Mordo said. "We offered him a chance for the redemption he wanted so badly, in exchange for his membership. And… well, here we are."

"To get back to what you were saying earlier," Blackheart said, "why were the super-feds in Diablo Muerte anyway?"

"Osborn and Ultron found out what the Inverted are after," Doctor Doom replied. "They're going to wield the Twilight Sword and power it with the Infinity Power Gem."

Blackheart stood up so quickly, one might've missed it if one blinked. "Doom, do you know how bad things would get if they succeeded? Having the demons and Asgardians go to war wouldn't cause a twentieth of the damage that weapon would cause! Whole dimensions would be destroyed with a single swipe of the sword!"

"There's only one way we can counter, Blackheart," Baron Mordo said, quite calm in comparison to the now hysterical Blackheart. "We need the Infinity Gems."

Blackheart calmed instantly. "In that case," he said, turning towards the pond, "follow me."

Blackheart stepped into the pond. Water evaporated at his touch, and the effect quickly spread. By the time that Blackheart got to the bottom of the pond, it was completely dry. Kane and the others stepped into pond as Blackheart put his hands against a rune-covered door. Each rune started glowing a different color as the door actually began to _shrink_. Soon, there was nothing there at all.

"When you first gave me the Soul Gem, Doom," Blackheart explained as he led his friends down a winding path of stairs, "it took me everything I had to force into a dormant state. I knew it wouldn't last, so I came here to this oasis."

"Two questions," Kane asked. "One – what do you mean by 'force it into a dormant state'? And what's so special about this oasis?"

"To answer your first question, Kane, the Soul Gem is unique among the Infinity Gems. It deals with something everything living thing has – a soul – and it also has a closer relation to magic than any of the other Gems. Because of those qualities, it is quite alive."

Blackheart sighed. "Unfortunately, it doesn't have a sparkling personality. It's constantly hungry, and the only things that can sate its hunger are souls. The only way its hunger could ever be sated, however, is if it devoured every soul in the universe. So naturally, I had to stop it."

"That leads us to your second question, Kane. The water in the pond above us has a very unique property – it saps a soul of all its strength. A single drop could leave a soul weak for 3,000 years. The amount of water in the pond would leave a soul unable to do anything for countless millions of years. Seeing as the Soul Gem is really just a soul – albeit an unimaginably powerful one – I knew of no better place to keep it safe… and keep others from its hunger."

Blackheart and his friends had come upon the chamber he had put the Soul Gem in. It stood on a pedestal that held it three feet above the ground. The Gem itself was a magnificent emerald green, sparkling in a light that didn't exist. Various faces appeared in the facets of the gem – some were known to the others, while most were not.

"Blackheart," a voice hissed. Kane shuddered at the sound. This was malice given form, anger given a voice. "I knew I would see you again."

"Hello, my crystalline friend," Blackheart replied, although it was clear from his voice that he considered the Soul Gem anything but a friend.

"It can speak!" Kane cried.

"Ah, perfect!" the Soul Gem cried. A lance of green energy shot out towards Kane, aimed right at his heart. Kane started to slide his katana out its sheath, but Blackheart stepped in front of him, shattering the lance of energy like it was a pane of glass.

"Do that again," Blackheart said, matter-of-fact, "and I'll send you right to Oblivion."

The Soul Gem didn't try the attack again, but instead asked, "What do you want? And don't try that 'I'm really your friend' trick. You can't pull that off for crap."

"Fine. I'll just get to the point," Blackheart replied. "We need you to help us."

The Soul Gem started laughing. Not a gentle laugh, but a great big ugly laugh. "And why the hell," the Soul Gem asked in between laughs, "would I do that?"

"Because it involves your brother. The Power Gem."

The Soul Gem stopped laughing immediately. Blue energy started leaking out of each of the Soul Gem's facets. The blue energy then started taking on various physical forms. The blue energy was, in fact, souls contained within the Soul Gem, let loose because the crystal's surprise let it lose its hold on them, however momentarily.

"Who dares to attack one of my brothers?" the Soul Gem asked, a hint of protectiveness creeping into its usually angry voice. "Speak!"

It was Doctor Doom who spoke up. "Surely you know of the Inverted on Earth? Of course you do. They're going to cannibalize your brother and use him to power the Twilight Sword. We need your help to stop them."

The blue energy was sucked back into the Soul Gem without a sound. "Fine. Just so you know, I'm not doing this to help you guys. If I had my way, I'd pull your souls out and rip them into tiny little pieces before you could say 'uncle'. I'm doing it to protect my family."

"Understood," Baron Mordo said. "Now, hold still while I come pick you up… literally."

The Soul Gem spat words in a language so ancient, not even Blackheart knew the translation. None of them needed to be fluent in said language, however, in order to know that words were not polite.

"No way am I letting anyone carry me," the Soul Gem snapped. "Watch closely. This is only a parlor trick in comparison to what I can really do."

A terrible screeching filled the air. It sounded like metal, but it was… different. Almost primal. It was as if the metal was protesting, with all its atoms, at being torn apart. Metal as black as the eyes of a great white shark surrounded the Soul Gem as it was lifted off its pedestal. The metal started folding and changing shape, forming a humanoid figure about six feet tall. A flash of yellow light filled the room, forcing everyone to close their eyes. When they opened them, they stared in astonishment at the figure before them.

It was a knight in the style of the medieval ages, but with some radical changes. The visor, instead of having a straight line across, was in the shape of a **V** that was curved slightly inward, letting nonexistent eyes see farther down. Eight spikes, each a foot long, protruded from where the spine would have been. The gloves each had blades that were two feet long jutting out from the tops of the wrists. On its right shoulder, a shield four feet wide with the face of a roaring lion on it clung to. Not hanging, not stuck to, _clung_ to. In its left hand was a black broadsword with a single red line running down the blade. It was beautiful in the way that an explosion was beautiful – it was an instrument for killing, no doubt, but it did its killing with elegance.

The most notable difference was found right in the area covering where the heart should have been. The Soul Gem was buried halfway into the armor there, like a rock buried halfway in the sand. The Soul Gem itself hadn't changed, showing its same emerald green color.

"Now, this is more like it!" the Soul Gem said, obviously pleased with itself.

Kane was staring at the Soul Gem's new host body in awe. "That," he breathed, "is completely badass."

"I didn't know you could do that," Blackheart said. If he was impressed, it didn't show in his voice. "Anything else you want to tell us?"

"Actually, yes," the Soul Gem replied. "I don't want it known that I have made a new body for myself. Don't want to attract the wrong kind of attention, if you know what I mean. So, instead of calling me the Soul Gem, call me… Black Knight."

**So ends this chapter. To answer your question, readers (I can hear you through the computer), Black Knight was an actual Marvel character. I tried to make it so this Black Knight had a pretty self-explanatory origin, so there wouldn't be any confusion. Until next time!**


	7. Chapter 7 Gem Hunt, part 2

Sorry for not updating for so long. I'm getting used to college life. Here's the new chapter for Inversion!

**Inversion chapter 7 – Gem Hunt, part 2**

"Well," Quantum said, "this is cheery."

Quantum was with Mystique, standing outside the mansion owned by Charles Xavier. The mansion was famous and infamous at the same time. Famous among parents for its reputation of getting young mutants to control their powers, infamous among children for the harsh methods the teachers used. Kids were especially scared of two teachers in particular – Scott Summers and Kitty Pryde. Both of them were the hardest on the children. Summers used his eyebeams on anyone he perceived as "troublemakers" (which was pretty much everyone), and Kitty Pryde… well, all Quantum heard was Pryde gave a new definition to the term "racking your brains."

Looking at Mystique, Quantum asked, "Why can't we free the students? They'll be much better off with us."

"We can't," Mystique said, her voice thick. "We can't risk any one of the X-Men tracking us back to our base. Otherwise, I would get those kids out or die in the attempt."

Quantum didn't say anything. She knew that Mystique was right, but that didn't make things any easier. After taking a moment to quell her anger, she asked, "Is anyone else going to help us?"

"There is someone else," Mystique replied, "but I don't understand. He should have beaten us here."

Almost in response, purple smoke started rising from the ground. In less than three seconds, the purple smoke encompassed them completely. Mystique groaned, muttering, "Of all the times…"

"Ladies and gentlemen," said a masculine voice, drawing out every word. It reminded Quantum of every ringmaster she saw at every circus she went to. "For one night only, please put your hands together for the one, the only…"

The smoke was swept aside, and Quantum saw the most horrible costume she had seen in her entire life. The green reminded her of a snake, scales and all, but the purple cape was like a bad knock-off of Doctor Strange's red cape. The cape was fastened by two gold clips that looked more like eyes. Gold gauntlets covered his hands, devoid of any other detail. Worst of all, where the head should have been, there was a giant gray bowl similar to… Quantum could only describe it as the unloved child of an astronaut's space helmet and a fish bowl.

"MYSTERIO!" he announced. He then started bowing to an imaginary audience, saying, "Thank you, thank you. You're too kind."

Quantum turned to Mystique, wearing an exasperated expression on her face. "Do we _have _to work with this guy?"

"Trust me, if all Beck did was act like he was in the circus, I would have handed him over to some cheesey wax museum," Mystique said, taking out some wire cutters and making a hole in the fence while she was at it. "But he's a lot more talented than people give him credit for. He even managed to fight Daredevil to a standstill so everyone in Hell's Kitchen could get away."

"My crowning achievement," Mysterio said, his chest puffing up with pride. "Too bad everyone believed that I was the one who was holding Hell's Kitchen hostage."

"It's not hard to see why," Quantum muttered under her breath as the three of them entered the hole in the fence.

* * *

As Mysterio and the others walked through the halls of the Xavier Institute, Quantum silently thanked God that she had run away before her parents sent her here. The place reminded her too much of a Gothic cavern, like some nightmare from the creator of the Castlevania games. The walls all contained pictures of the X-Men, and it was rare that one of those pictures didn't have them inflicting some torturous thing to a young child. The most horrifying images involved Wolverine, who was doing things that even the X-Men wouldn't have done.

"What are we looking for?" Quantum asked, whispering so quietly it was almost under her breath.

"We're looking for the Mind Gem," Mystique replied just as quietly. "It's the source of Charles Xavier's power."

"Wait, I thought he got his powers because he was a mutant? The most powerful telepath on Earth?"

"Well, that last part is true. He is the most powerful telepath on Earth. He did not get that title, though, through his mutant abilities. In fact, he's not a mutant at all. If it weren't for the Mind Gem, he'd just be a very evil man in a wheelchair."

"This wasn't in the script," Mysterio said in a normal voice. A voice imbedded with alarm. Turning to see what was distressing Mysterio, Quantum and Mystique understood and shared that alarm.

A small team of X-Men stood before them. Cyclops was there, his hands on his ruby red sunglasses. Kitty Pryde was there as well, her outfit making her look like a hooker-turned-villain. Nightcrawler hung from the chandelier above them like a demonic bat. That wasn't what scared them. In front of all the other X-Men was Wolverine, his claws already out.

"I don't suppose we can talk about this?" Quantum asked weakly.

"Mystique," Nightcrawler growled. "How dare you come here, mother."

"Enough of the family reunions," Cyclops snapped. "X-Men, take them down. Then… take them to the Danger Room."

Mysterio threw three green test tubes at the X-Men. Upon contact, they didn't shatter, but instead started coating the X-Men in what appeared to be liquid cement. In two seconds, the X-Men were encased in actual cement.

"Go!" Mysterio shouted. "I'll handle them! You guys get to the Professor!"

Mystique and Quantum ran off without a word. Quantum had no idea where to go, but Mystique had no such problem – she took the lead and turned corner after corner. Eventually, the two women found themselves face to face with the door to Professor Xavier's room.

Unfortunately, they also found themselves face to face with Kitty Pryde and Nightcrawler.

Mystique wasted no time in pulling out two handguns, and started shooting at the two X-Men. Pryde turned intangible, while Nightcrawler teleported around the room.

Quantum ran through the opening that Mystique gave her. Opening the door, Quantum used her power to slow down brain waves in an effort to help Mysterio and Mystique. Satisfied that she had done all she could to stop the X-Men, she went inside.

The first thing that hit her was the smell. It overwhelmed her so quickly and completely she started throwing up before she could even identify the smell. After she regained control of her stomach, she looked up and saw what was causing the smell. A rotting corpse was there, in a wheelchair. In its lap, a blue gem sparkled in an unseen light.

"You little bitch," a female voice with a British accent spat. "Now everyone will know the truth!"

Emma Frost stepped out from behind some curtains. Wearing a white bra, pants of the same color, and a white feather boa, she looked like she had just come back from a Vegas show. Quantum knew better. This was one of her recurring nightmares – Frost was the one that handed her over to S.H.I.E.L.D. Wasting no time, Quantum directed all her brain-stopping energy towards Frost. It had the desired effect – Frost stopped in her tracks completely. Dashing forward, Quantum grabbed the Mind Gem.

The minute it was in her hands, Quantum gasped as her mind touched every other one in the universe. Hell, she even got a glimpse into Galactus's mind. Then she started remembering her training. Slowly, but surely, she returned to Earth… more specifically, herself.

Using the Mind Gem, she froze every X-Men in the house. Once again using it, she sent a telepathic message to Mystique and Mysterio. _I got the Gem! Let's get out of here!_

They didn't need to be told twice. They never stopped running until the mansion was well beyond their sight.


	8. Chapter 8: Gem Hunt, part 3

**Alright. Took me a while to think this one up. Please note that I'm making this up as I go along. Hope you guys enjoy!**

Inversion Chapter Eight – Gem Hunt, part 3

Avengers Tower was the tallest building in New York. No one knew how they constructed it so quickly, as it was completed within six days. Gleaming diamond windows and adamantium steel glinted in the sunlight, reminding everybody that the Avengers were watching over them.

The irony wasn't lost on Electro as he walked the streets of New York. He and the Collective have been walking the streets for three days now, looking for a way in. Carnage had taken up residence over in Hell's Kitchen, using the various law offices located there to find some way into Avengers Tower. Curt Connors was in his old laboratory at Horizon Labs, using the resources at this disposal to find a way to hack into the security systems. Sabretooth was in Central Park, talking to old friends and eating food from Subway. Bullseye was in Battery Park, doing God knows what. Electro himself was over by the Baxter Building, trying to track down anyone who used to be Avengers.

Electro approached a woman who was sitting on one of the benches. She was wearing a black beret and sunglasses that matched. A red designer sweater clung to her body, with one button on the collar. Black pants barely reached her ankles, showing off her pale white skin. High heel shoes were also in black, with the exception of one blue stripe running down both pairs. The woman herself was using a Dell Notebook. Her fingers danced over the buttons, turning what should have been mundane into an art form.

Electro took a seat next to her, his brown coat rustling as he made himself comfortable. "A storm's coming," he said offhandedly.

"How should we shield ourselves?" she asked in a similar tone.

"Stay away from anything iron," he replied. "Hello, Masque."

The woman called Masque snapped her Notebook, turning her head towards Electro. "Are you trying to get us arrested? Call me Whitney."

"Why are you so worried? Shouldn't the fiancé of Tony Stark be safe from the guys like me?"

"Not if they knew that I was a double agent. We should probably take this conversation somewhere else."

"You're right," Electro said, remembering the ridiculous amount of recording equipment the Baxter Building had. "You up for Starbucks?"

"Absolutely. The autumn chill is getting to me."

* * *

Minutes later, they were sitting in one of the many Starbucks buildings located nearby. Whitney had ordered a Blonde Roast, which she took black. Electro, not liking the taste of coffee, opted for hot chocolate. Both were taking small sips of their drinks while talking.

"What calls for the social visit, Max? I doubt it's to reminisce about our… history."

"There was something, but now that you've brought it up, I do want to talk about us."

Even though Whitney was still wearing sunglasses, Electro could tell that she was avoiding meeting his eyes. "What do you want me to say? I'm sorry that I put our relationship in perspective against the thousands of lives we can save if I took undercover work? You were a wonderful boyfriend, but I didn't want you to wait for my assignment to be over."

"I understand all that," Electro replied. "What I don't understand – what I'm hurting over – is one simple question. Why did I have to find out about your assignment from my bosses, and not from you?"

A single tear slid down Whitney's right cheek. "Because I knew I couldn't stand seeing you in pain," she whispered. "Every night for the past week, I've been waking up with tears on my face. I don't need to talk to Leonard Sampson to know that they were dreams of seeing your face when you found out."

Electro said nothing, only stared at his hot chocolate. It would have been easier if she had said that she didn't love him anymore. Finding out that she still had feelings for him just made him feel even worse inside.

"You won't have to be doing undercover work anymore," Electro said after a few moments. "Something's come up a few days ago."

Electro then proceeded to tell Whitney what had happened. He told her about how Osborn and Ultron infiltrated the Helicarrier, finding out about the Inverted's plans. He told her how they were planning to use the Infinity Power Gem to turbo-boost the Twilight Sword's power.

"That's why I'm here with…" Electro looked around to make sure no one was listening, "my friends. We need the Infinity Gem that controls Reality. Can you help us?"

Whitney was horrified. She had even dropped her Notebook and her coffee. "I can't join you guys in breaking into the Tower," she replied. "What I can do, however, is tell you how to get past all the security."

* * *

It was eight at night when the Collective stood on the rooftop nearest Avengers Tower. The logo for the Avengers, a giant letter _A_, was shining in red at the top of the Tower.

"Do you think the information she gave us is accurate?" Carnage asked, not taking his eyes off the Tower.

"Whitney wouldn't sell us out like that," Electro replied.

"Sell _you_ out, you mean," Sabretooth grunted.

Electro had never wanted to punch Sabretooth so much in his life. Electricity started sparking along his hands as his anger grew. Just as quickly, though, he forced himself to calm down. _Remember what you're here for_, he kept repeating to himself in his head.

"She cares about protecting innocent people just as much as we do," Electro said. "So yes, I trust her."

"That's good enough for me," Bullseye said. "Your gut never let us down before. In fact, if she does sell us out, I'll buy drinks for all of us."

"Can we just go already?" the Lizard complained. "Listening to you brutes argue is giving me a headache." Without waiting for the others, he leaped towards the Tower.

Electro and the others leapt after him. They had chosen this spot for a reason other than its close proximity – it faced the one side of the building where the only glass window was located. With an almost musical sound, the glass shattered as the Collective broke through the window.

"All right, guys," Carnage whispered. "According to the information that Whitney got for us, the Gem should be located in the center of the Tower. Since we're only three levels below, let's get to it."

Their first obstacle was a locked door. It required Steve Rogers' fingerprint to open, so it would normally have been impossible to get in. However, when the Collective is concerned, nothing is impossible. Electro placed his hands on the sides of the console and started manipulating the electricity inside. Soon, he had fooled the machine into thinking that it had scanned the correct fingerprint, and it slid open for them.

After going up a flight of stairs, they saw a series of laser beams. There must have been at least seventy-five beams, and they all moved at speeds that the human eye barely was able to follow. Either the beams would set off an alarm, or it would slice them to ribbons. Knowing the suicidal tendencies of Iron Man, the second one seemed more likely.

Connors squatted down and studied the lasers, his eyes flicking from one beam to the next. After about twelve seconds, he held up his left hand and started counting down from five on it. Once he reached zero, Carnage used his strength to hurl Connors across the room. Connors dodged all the lasers, pulling in and moving his arms, tail, and legs as he needed to. Once he reached the other side of the room, he clung to a wall and hit a series of buttons on a console similar to the one in the other room. With a hiss, the beams vanished.

"Two traps disabled in less than a minute," Bullseye muttered. "Avengers, you're slipping."

The level that held the Gem, though, contained a complete surprise.

The Collective entered the room to find Iron Man, Hawkeye, and Steve Rogers there. Iron Man had his helmet off, letting everybody see his playboy features. The grin on his face, though, would have looked more appropriate on a mad scientist. Hawkeye showed no emotion on his face as he pointed his bow at Bullseye. Captain America gripped his vibranium shield, looking like he was about to throw it.

"Hello, boys," Stark grinned. "Welcome to Avengers Tower. Hope you enjoy your stay, beca-"

"Change your flamin' tagline already, Stark!" Sabretooth growled. "Everyone survives, you crazy sonuva bitch."

"How'd you know we would be here?" Connors asked.

Iron Man stepped aside to reveal Whitney. She looked she was ready to either start crying or screaming.

"I'm so sorry," Whitney told Electro. "I didn't want to…"

"Of course she did," Stark interrupted. "How about that? A double agent playing the lovestruck fool, and she _does_ turn into a lovestruck fool! Guess that means you're not needed anymore, huh, Sparky?"

Electro flew at Stark, electricity covering his body as he screamed "I'LL KILL YOU!" Hawkeye launched an arrow at him, but it never found its mark thanks to Carnage's tendril.

The room erupted into chaos. Connors and Bullseye took on Captain America, as they exchanged punches, kicks, and counterattacks. Sabretooth and Carnage took up Hawkeye's attention, catching arrows out of the air and sometimes throwing them back at him. Electro was taking on Iron Man.

It was the latter pair that was causing all the destruction. Electricity clashed against repulsor energy, reducing anything they touched to ash. Electro's companions had never seen him so furious. His mouth was open in an eternal scream of rage as he threw everything he had against Iron Man. Stark; however, was looking quite bored.

"I was supposed to go to my bachelor party tonight," Stark said annoyingly. "Instead, I have to deal with you guys. I know it's His plan and all, but is it too much to ask for one night?"

Electro was caught off guard by that last statement. Who was this "Him"? Iron Man took advantage of this and turned his repulsor blasts on to full power, blasting Electro into a wall. He was hurt, badly enough that he couldn't use his right arm.

Iron Man walked in front of Electro, an adamantium blade popping out of his left gauntlet. "It's been an annoyance," Iron Man said, plunging his blade at Electro. He closed his eyes as he waited for the end.

He heard it pierce flesh, but he didn't feel any pain other than his broken arm. Opening his eyes, he was horrified at what he saw. Whitney had put herself in the blade's path, taking the blow meant for him. Coughing up a small amount of blood, she whispered "I… love… you…"

Iron Man thrust his arm out, throwing Whitney off the blade. Turning to where she landed, he spat, "You were never a good girlfriend, anyway."

That's when he felt a hand on the side of his head. He started screaming as all the lights went out, shocking everybody in the room. The screams continued even as the rest of the Collective finished off their opponents. Trying to locate the source of the screams, Carnage shouted, "Electro! What are you doing?"

With that, the lights came on. Iron Man fell to the floor, not even twitching as he did so. Electro stood there, breathing heavily. "I didn't kill him," Electro answered everyone's unspoken question. "I did the next worst thing. I took away everything that made him smart. His memories of learning mechanics and engineering are gone. His brain's ability to learn new things has been turned off. He will never make another Iron Man armor, pilot one, or relearn how to make one."

The rest of the Collective were staring at him in awe. Electro didn't notice. He walked over to where Whitney had been tossed and cradled her in his arms. Every memory he had of her – their first date at the movies, the time when he accidently sucked the power out of her iPhone, and many more – flooded through his brain. He wasn't even aware he started crying until he was tapped on the shoulder. Looking up through blurry eyes, he saw Carnage holding something yellow in his hands.

"I got the Infinity Gem," he said gently. "We should go now."

"Can we…" Electro wiped the tears from his eyes, "can we take her? So we can give her a proper funeral?"

Carnage was about to say no when Sabretooth said, "Sure. I'll carry her."

The Collective was gone by the time the sun rose, the only evidence of their ever being there a missing gem, lots of ash, and a black beret.

**Damn. Didn't think I could write something like that. It'll probably be a while before I update again, so until then, viva Templar!**


	9. Chapter 9: Gem Hunt, part 4

**Hi, everyone! Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I'm entering my first relationship that I've had in a long time, and I'm trying to be the best boyfriend I can be. I'll do what I can to update sooner, but my lady comes first!**

Inversion, chapter 9 – Gem Hunt, part 4

Concussion wondered, for the seventh time, if he was in Jurassic Park.

He and Osborn had taken one of the jets that Oscorp kept producing, flying it to the Savage Land. Concussion knew nothing about that place, save for the name and Osborn's warning. "Be ready to use your power the instant that we get there," he said.

Now Concussion knew what he meant. They were in the middle of Antarctica, but the vegetation suggested that they might as well have been in the Amazon jungle. At one point, he saw a pterodactyl fly by. Concussion knew that he would see some crazy things as a part of the Resistance, but he didn't think it would be this crazy.

Currently, he and Osborn were cutting through vegetation. Concussion had no idea where they were going, but Osborn seemed to know. The thick vines and other foliage were no match for the blades on Norman's Green Goblin armor, cutting through them like wet tissue paper.

"Ok, it may be because I grew up in an Amish village – who, by the way, think that progress should have stopped at the horse and buggy – but what is up with this place?" Concussion asked.

"Before I answer that," Osborn said, "explain to me something. If you're from an Amish village, how come you know so much about the modern world? I even saw you use an iPhone with no difficulty."

Concussion sighed. That question always managed to depress him every time it was asked. "I was… disinherited by my family."

"I'm sorry," Osborn replied, his understanding more than clear in his tone.

"It's not your fault," Concussion said. "I'm not sure it's anyone's. I'm the first mutant to ever be born in my village. And if you think the outside world is harsh to mutants, you've never seen how the Amish treat them."

Images of torches and pitchforks flashed through Concussion's mind. "It was the witch trials all over again. I was tied to a stake, and the man in charge of the town, my priest, said I was going to burn like the demon I was."

"So what happened?"

"Taskmaster happened," Concussion replied. "He swung in like he was Spider-Man and knocked the torch from the priest's hands. He held his sword to the priest's neck, saying that if anyone so much as touched me, they wouldn't live to see their next harvest. Of course everybody did as he implied – the street was empty in minutes, everyone having ran back home. Taskmaster cut me loose and told me to find you guys, and… well, here I am."

"Indeed you are," Osborn said. "You have more than earned the right to know about this place."

That's right – Concussion forgot about the question he asked. "So what is up with this place?" Concussion repeated.

"You mean why does this jungle look like it was taken straight out of Jurassic Park and placed right in the middle of one of the coldest areas on Earth?" Osborn elaborated. "Well, it's all thanks to the Time Gem. How to explain it? Think of this place as a tiny bubble. The Time Gem preserved everything about the era of the dinosaurs and kept it running in here."

"So, you're saying the reason this place is still around is because someone pushed the repeat button on the Time Gem?"

"More or less," Osborn replied. "That only applies to the environment itself, though. The animals here are free to do as they please."

As if to make his point, a T-Rex charged out of the bush, its roar making Concussion's ears hurt. Norman dove to the side and chucked a pumpkin bomb at it, its orange gold flashing in the sunlight. It exploded against the T-Rex's side, but it didn't appear to do anything other than make it mad. Roaring again, it charged at Osborn, its jaws open to snap up its next meal.

It was bound to be disappointed. An arrow plunged itself into the T-Rex's left eye. The arrow was quickly followed by another pumpkin bomb, this time flying into the mouth of the T-Rex. That did the trick – the T-Rex fell to the ground with a massive thud.

"And that's what ya get fer messin' with my friends," a voice snapped at the dead dinosaur. Concussion heard that voice before – a voice that had trouble deciding if it wanted to sound like Liam Neeson or Jack Black.

"_Taskmaster?_" Concussion and Osborn asked at the same time.

"No, I'm a candy gram – OF COURSE IT'S ME!" Taskmaster snapped. Concussion and Osborn heard a rustling sound from up above them, then they saw a figure drop down in front of them. Standing up, they saw it was indeed Taskmaster. He had his trademark sword at his belt, its polished steel glinting in the sunlight. In his left hand he was holding a bow very similar to Hawkeye's, only this one was colored white.

"What are you doing here?" Osborn half-asked, half-demanded.

"I didn' follow ya, if that's what yer askin'," Taskmaster replied. "I was trackin' down an old friend o' mine."

"You don't mean…" Osborn began.

"Yep. Deadpool's in the Savage Land," Taskmaster finished.

Osborn started rubbing his eyes with one hand. It wasn't necessary, seeing as he was wearing a helmet, but Osborn didn't seem to care. "Okay. Is there anyone else other than Deadpool here?" Osborn asked.

"Not that I know of," Taskmaster replied. "M' tipster told me that he'd come here for mojitos and Canadian pancakes."

Concussion was doing his absolute best not to laugh. Turning around, he was biting his lips so hard that he almost drew blood. Taskmaster noticed and leaped in front of Concussion, twisting in the air three times as he did so. "Ya think this's funny?!" He snapped.

"N-no sir," Concussion stuttered.

"Taskmaster, be fair to Concussion," Osborn ordered. "He hasn't even seen pictures of Deadpool until a few days ago, let alone seen him in action."

Taskmaster didn't say anything, only raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Are ya serious?!" Taskmaster asked, flabbergasted. "I know y' came from an Amish village, but I didn' think y' stay… I thought ye'd learn more 'bout mo'ern 'ciety by now."

"Hey, cut me some slack," Concussion replied. "I'm still relatively new to this. Right now, Amish kids my age would be just setting out into the world to experience what it has to offer."

"Well, if we're lucky, you won't have to meet Deadpool," Osborn said. "The only thing worse than meeting that mercenary would be meeting… him."

Both Osborn and Taskmaster shared a shudder that ran down their spines. Concussion had no idea what would scare them that much – he heard that Osborn stared down Wolverine without so much as blinking an eye. He resolved not to meet that character if it was in his power.

"Want to walk with us, Taskmaster?" Concussion asked. "We're on a search of our own."

"Sure thing," Taskmaster replied. "I sure could use some comp'ny right now. These lizards are crappy conversationalists."

So the newly formed trio walked on, with Osborn explaining the Inverted's plan that he and Ultron uncovered on the Helicarrier. By the time Osborn was done explaining, two things had happened. One, Taskmaster's jaw was hanging wide open. Second, they had entered a clearing with a radius of about fifty feet.

And in that clearing was Deadpool.

"Oh, hey Task!" Deadpool said enthusiastically. "I see you came for the Canadian pancakes. You even brought Justin Bieber and George W. Bush!" At that, he pointed at Concussion and Osborn.

"Um, you know there aren't any pancakes here, right?" Concussion asked. Handling this guy was like watching five movies spliced together on fast-forward – he was impossible to follow.

"No, duh! I'm not that dumb," Deadpool replied. "It's all in the kitchen behind me. And man, Kazar has some killer mojitos! You should try… oh wait, you're under-age."

True to his word, there was a kitchen behind Deadpool. "Ah, well. You can try his orange juice. Just remember to say no to his secret sauce!"

Taskmaster had enough of this. Before anyone had time to blink, Taskmaster had drawn his sword and lunged towards Deadpool, intending to stab him through the heart.

**Hey, woah! I'm supposed to die here? I don't think so! Move over, I'm taking over!**

What the… Deadpool?! But… but… you can't write yourself into the story! Only I can do that!

**I'm sorry, Infiniteburn, was I not speaking clear English? I'm the boss now! Move over!**

No way! Get back in the story!

**You ever played a game called Street Fighter?**

Yeah, why do you –

_**Shoryuken!**_

*krack* ugh… *thud*

**Ok, then, so I'm in charge! Let's see, um… so yeah, I kill Task and the other guys with extreme powers of awesomeness! Powers of awesomeness that left everyone else temporarily blind! No, permanently! Then, we had a huge rave party thingie! Boobies! Nah, I should save that for Wall Street. And all the girls were crushing on me, especially Rogue and the Scarlet Witch! And, yeah, and money started raining from the sky and I got rich! I got richer than Tony Stark! He was all "boo hoo, you can't be richer than me," and I was like "bitch please! I'm the awesome new guy in town!"**

I'm only going to say this once, Deadpool. Get out of here and get back in the story!

**Infiniteburn?! How did you… oh, hey there, Scarlet Witch. You're looking good. I should invite your boobs to a date. Or is it…**

"Deadpool, enough!" Scarlet Witch shouted. "Go back into the story! And you shall have no memories of this!"

**NOOOOOO! I DIDN'T EVEN GET ANY CHIMICHANGAS!**

_*Deadpool disappears in a cloud of red smoke*_

Sorry about that, folks. Now, where was I? Oh, yes, I remember. Taskmaster lunged towards Deadpool, not noticing the wisps of red smoke rising from Deadpool's uniform. With a roar that held the pent-up emotions associated with loss of family and other trials, Taskmaster stabbed Deadpool straight through the heart. Shocked, Deadpool could do little except fall to the ground unconscious.

"Hey, wait a minute, I think there's something on the counter," Concussion said after a minute of shock. Walking into the kitchen, Concussion did see something on the counter. Picking it up, he held up the gem so the others could see.

It was the Time Gem.

"Great work, team," Osborn said. "Now let's get out of here. I think we all earned a well-deserved break from this."

**Ok, that took a lot longer than I thought. I'm just happy that I got this chapter done. Hope you guys enjoyed!**


	10. Chapter 10: End of the Gem Hunt

**Hey everyone! Sorry for the long update. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy this!**

Inversion Chapter 10 – End of the Gem Hunt

Kane looked around at everyone assembled in the throne room.

Currently, he was in Latveria. After Diablo Muerte was trashed by the Inverted, Doom had offered the Resistance to use his castle in Latveria. At first, he thought that everybody would be suspicious about the Soul Gem, a.k.a Black Knight, showing up as he did. However, everybody accepted his story – that he was a man named Robert Kensington who was chosen by the Soul Gem to act as its guardian. Once they had a moment alone, Kane whispered, "How did you pull that off?"

"When you get into tussles with the likes of the Silver Surfer and Thor," Black Knight whispered back, "learning how to convince people becomes a piece of cake in comparison."

A lot more people started showing up after that. Quantum, Mystique and Mysterio showed up an hour after Kane and his group arrived. Quantum looked like she was extremely sick, with her hair matted to her face with sweat and her skin far paler than it should have been. Kane asked her why she looked like that, but she refused to talk about it, saying that she wanted Concussion here so she only had to say it once.

Carnage and the rest of the Collective arrived the next day. Strangely enough, they were all dressed in formal wear. Even Sabretooth had cleaned himself up, combing back his hair and dressing in a yellow polo shirt and black slacks. Electro seemed to be extremely depressed – he would wander around the castle and wouldn't speak to anyone, not even his own teammates.

Concussion arrived a day after that. Out of everyone, his group seemed to be enjoying themselves the most. For some reason, Taskmaster was with them. They were joking and exchanging stories. Most of them concerned Deadpool.

It had been three days since then. Nobody else had arrived, and the Resistance was starting to get worried. At the moment, Kane, Quantum, and Concussion were all in the royal dining room. Blackheart and Mystique were there as well, but they got their own table so the teenagers could enjoy themselves. While they were all eating, the teenagers exchanged stories. Kane left out the bit about the true nature of Black Knight, instead telling them the story that Black Knight concocted. Quantum told them about her time at the Xavier Institute, which left Concussion throwing up and Kane saying "That's just wrong!" at least three dozen times. Concussion then told his story, which actually was readily accepted.

"You mean you guys actually believe me?" Concussion asked.

"Of course," Quantum replied, taking a bite of her vegetarian lasagna. "What else would the Time Gem be doing in the Savage Land?"

Concussion couldn't find an argument to that. That's when he saw that Kane had a hand over his mouth. "Is everything alright, Kane?" Concussion asked.

"Deadpool thought you were Justin Bieber," Kane said through his hand, his smile more than evident in his accusing tone.

With that, everyone started laughing. Concussion was rolling on the ground while gripping his sides, Quantum put her head between her arms on the table as if she was crying, and Kane just threw his head back. It got to the point where the other occupants in the room, Blackheart and Mystique, started staring at them.

"What is going on here?" Blackheart asked.

"I'm not entirely sure," Mystique replied.

"Teenagers," Blackheart muttered, taking another bite of his completely raw steak. "I'll never understand them."

The laughter would have continued had a strange sound not filled the room. It was certainly odd, to say the least – it sounded as if electricity was exploding. In a flash of purple, Ultron appeared in the middle of the dining room. He was missing his left arm, and in his right he had the Space Gem.

"Power… fading…" Ultron rasped. "Need… gamma radiation…"

"Way ahead of you, Ultron," Blackheart replied. Rushing to Ultron's side, he grabbed the Space Gem. "I know where Doom's lab is. We'll get you a new gamma radiation generator and a new arm." Turning to Quantum and her friends, he ordered, "Go get Doom and the rest of the Resistance. They need to know what happened."

* * *

An hour later, they were all in Doom's laboratory as Ultron's repairs were just finished. Flexing his new adamantium arm, he got off the table he was being "operated" on. Lifting up his faceplate, Doom asked, "Well, Ultron? How do you feel?"

"I feel a lot better," Ultron replied. "Thanks Doom."

"What happened?" Mystique asked as she, Black Knight, Carnage, and Osborn entered the room.

"Everything was going so well," Ultron said, his eyes focusing on something in the distance. "We had gotten the Space Gem from the Inhumans. Annihilus and I had almost no difficulty doing so. That's when The Kree With No Name showed up. Wraith killed Annihilus, and would have killed me too had I not escaped using the Space Gem. Unfortunately, he left a parting gift," Ultron finished, gesturing to his left arm.

Or so it seemed. "Things got worse after that. I got a transmission from the High Evolutionary just before I used the Gem. He was screaming at me for help, saying that his entire team was killed, that the Inverted already got to the Power Gem. Then I heard a new voice, right after I heard High Evolutionary's head being taken off. It was… him. He told me that they already had the Twilight Sword, and that they were going to use it tomorrow."

"That only gives us twelve hours to find them and stop them," Carnage said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Black Knight," Mystique asked, "could you use the Soul Gem to track down the Power Gem?"

Black Knight shook his head, saying, "I've been trying that ever since I… became the Black Knight. But it's like the Power Gem never existed. I can't find it anywhere in the universe."

"Ultron," Osborn asked, "do you think you can trace the message you received back to the location it was sent from?"

"I don't think so," Ultron replied. "I was in a pretty sorry state when the High Evolutionary contacted me, and tracing his communications is impossible at the best of times."

"What if I boosted your powers with the Mind Gem?" Quantum asked.

Everyone turned as she walked into the room. "My friends and I heard everything. Would the Mind Gem make a difference?"

"If my brain was organic or yours robotic, it would," Ultron said. "Unfortunately, as things stand we can't do anything."

"Then I'll use the Reality Gem to forge a connection," Carnage replied. "It won't be for long, but maybe you could do what you have to do in that time."

"Then let's do it," Ultron replied. Quantum and Carnage held out their respective Gems as they started to glow. With no warning whatsoever, Quantum blacked out.

* * *

When she awoke again, she was inside a… she didn't know what to call this. It looked like a tunnel, but it seemed to be constructed entirely of numbers and symbols found in the highest levels of math. Quantum herself was floating in the center of the tunnel.

"Where the hell am I?" Quantum wondered.

"Have you forgotten already?" A familiar voice asked. Turning around, Quantum found herself face to face with Ultron. He rushed past her, shouting, "Quickly! We have to move before we run out of time!"

Quantum wasted no time in taking after Ultron. As they flew through the tunnel, Quantum shouted, "What are we looking for?"

"I highlight all my communications in red so that, when I pass through here, I can find things easily! The brighter the shade of red, the more recent the recording is!" He shouted back.

With that, Quantum and Ultron focused on finding the recording. The more time they spent in the tunnel, though, the more the fuzzy it seemed to Quantum. To Ultron, Quantum started to get fainter and fainter. Neither of them kept track of how much time had passed when they found the code they were looking for.

"Excellent! Now what?" Quantum asked.

"Now you use the Mind Gem to force the code into me," Ultron replied. "Or rather, the version of me that you're currently looking at."

Quantum didn't know what to do. When she used the Mind Gem back at the Institute, she had no clue what she was doing. She just treated the Gem like it was her mutant power, freezing everybody in their tracks. This was something completely out of her league.

_Ok, Mind Gem_, she thought to the Gem she knew her real self was holding right now. _You heard what Ultron said. We need to get that code into him right now!_

She had no sooner thought that when the code started to swirl around Ultron. As they spun faster and faster, they started approaching Ultron's eyes. Without warning, they flew into his eyes. He arched his back in pain, but he didn't scream. When the last bit of code entered his eyes, everything started fading to black.

* * *

Ultron awoke standing up. Thank God that he decided to put locking mechanisms into his legs. Quantum was starting to wake up as well, shaking the grogginess from her head as she stood up.

"Well, Ultron?" Mystique asked. "Do you know where the Inverted have their super-powered Twilight Sword?"

"I just got the information, Mystique," Ultron replied. "Give me a second to process it."

Ultron's eyes narrowed to thin lines as he concentrated on the data swirling inside his head. Like a microscopic puzzle, he started to piece it all together.

"Oh, God…" Ultron whispered. "That's where they are."

"_**WHERE?!**_" Mystique shouted.

Ultron looked at everyone in turn. "The Inverted have it where it all started. It's in Avengers Mansion."

* * *

**Sorry for the super-long update! I'll do what I can to update more often. Until next time, viva Templar!**


	11. For Those We Lost

**Three cloaked figures walk past a graveyard. They aren't the only ones here; several dozen people are scattered throughout, either crying or trying to hold back tears. As the three figures approach a certain set of gravestones, they pull back their hoods. It's Quantum, Kane, and Concussion. Kane lays a single yellow rose before a gravestone. As he gets up, he starts crying.**

**InfiniteBurn walks in and stands with them at the gravestone. Quantum hugs Kane, trying to give what comfort she could. "It's not your fault, Kane," she tells him. "No one could have seen this coming."**

"**But they're my parents, Jan," Kane said in a trembling voice. "I should have done something more, try to have been there…"**

"**There was nothing anyone could do," InfiniteBurn whispered. "Only a madman could have seen this coming, because that's the only type of person who could even imagine this."**

**We all stand there, staring at the gravestones. They read, "In Loving Memory, Jack Welsley. March 29, 1963 – April 15, 2013. In Loving Memory, Miranda Welsley. December 14, 1962 – April 15, 2013."**

**This is dedicated to the people of Boston. Our hearts are with you. May you find your families and remain safe.**


End file.
